Confessions
by SidQuin
Summary: Miyagi and Akagi figure out where they stand. Akagi x Miyagi  Status: Completed
1. Confession

_"Miyagi!" Akagi's voice boomed as the young point guard just barely manages to shake past his defender, using that brief instance to attempt to shoot._

_Four seconds on the clock._

_When in actuality, it's a well-disguised fake. The ball is passed with speed and precision like always._

_Three seconds._

_And as always, Akagi is there to securely receive it, despite Miyagi not so much as glancing in his direction. As if the center's presence is never far from his mind._

_Two seconds._

_And naturally, the second the ball reaches Akagi's hands he jumps before anyone can react._

_The last second._

_And even more naturally, he slams the ball into the hoop so hard the rims shakes even as he lands back onto the ground._

_The buzzer rang as the scoreboard changed Shohoku's score from 73 to 75. Just enough to beat Sumino High School: 75 to 74._

_What followed after was a blur of cheering, jumping, and high-fiving as Shohoku High qualified for the regional quarter-finals, a feat that would've been unthinkable just a semester before. He distinctly recalls feelings of both relief and adrenaline but he can't say he clearly remembers any of the specific compliments he was showered with, not even Ayako's._

_What he does remember is a rush of joy that quickly doubles as he's pulled into a hug by a familiar pair of strong arms. He remembers the warmth that resonates in him for the brief moment he's pressed against Akagi's body and most of all, he remembers the grin that threatens to overtake his face as he looks up to meet the equally excited smile directed back at him-_

"Are you paying attention?" A stern voice interjects, interrupting Miyagi's memories of his first high school tournament. Shifting uncomfortably on Akagi's bed, the newly appointed captain attempts to clear his head of any wandering thoughts.

Looking back at the owner of the voice he unconvincingly assures, "Oh yeah, of course, Capt-I mean, Akagi-sempai."

The former captain only frowns disapprovingly at him, "Anyways, Kogure's appointed Mitsui as your vice-captain, he's had experience leading a basketball team so if you have any questions you can always ask him. Ayako's also willing to help with paper work." Sliding some documents out of his desk (mostly relating to club funds and attendance), Akagi hands the papers to his newly appointed successor.

When Miyagi only nods absentmindedly in response, looking strangely anxious, Akagi's curiosity is piqued even further, "Something wrong?" To his surprise, Miyagi's expression becomes uncharacteristically wistful, almost longing.

"…" Miyagi looks contemplative, carefully mulling over his choice of words, "Just wondering if we'll really be okay. It'll be harder to keep Sakuragi and Rukawa in line without you." The corners of Akagi's mouth twitch ever-so-slightly upwards at this, forming the familiar almost-smile that Miyagi had become so accustomed to.

"Well, Sakuragi won't be out of rehab for two months, so you'll have time to figure it out. Besides, if anything, he respects you more then he does me," Akagi huffs, half sarcastic, half serious.

The underclassman shakes his head calmly, eyes cast downwards as if to avoid eye contact, "That's not true, sempai." He pauses for a moment, weighing whether he should risk his masculine ego by continuing his train of thought, "…Hanamichi really respects you. Everyone does."

Akagi raises an eyebrow, surprised by the sudden burst of sincerity, "Not that they'd ever admit it," he feels compelled to add.

"Moreover," Miyagi continues, his voice becoming increasingly more flustered, "The team's not going to be the same without you."

Finally noticing the unusual level of hesitancy in his friend's voice, Akagi addresses the issue with his usual tact, "What's up with you?" As Miyagi attempts to put his feelings into words, the shade of red his face turns appears to answer for him. Not that the answer was a particularly clear one, as all Akagi could do was stare bewildered at how anyone could possibly turn so red so quickly.

"'ma mizz yoo…" Miyagi finally mumbles out, his voice barely audible as his fingers dig into his friend's bed, clenching on to the sheets as if his life depended on it.

Akagi simply scrunches his face in annoyance, perplexed by his underclassmen's sudden reticence, "What are you trying to s-" His question is cut short when he's suddenly pulled by the collar, leaning over till he's eye to eye with a bright red Miyagi. Before he can react, Miyagi presses his lips against his, wrapping his arms around his teammate's neck.

Yet despite the strain of leaning over, the weight currently hanging from his neck, the burning sensation in his lungs, and the shock of being kissed less then consensually, Akagi Takenori can't seem to bring himself to pull away. Instead, it's Miyagi who ends the kiss, arms sliding off the taller boy's shoulders.

The two stare at each other for what seems like an eternity, both panting and bright red, not quite processing what had just happened. It's almost a suffocating silence, until Miyagi finally breaks the tension.

"I'm going to miss you," he states flatly. Casually even. As if he didn't just kiss his teammate of two years. As if he were just stating a fact, like that the sky is blue or Yao Ming is really tall.

Akagi blinks. Once. Then twice. As he continues to gawk at his underclassman, a newly-composed Miyagi mentally prepares himself for the gorilla rage that would no doubt be inflicted on him. 'He'll probably punch me in the gut; a blow to the face might draw too much attention. Worst case scenario he throws me at a wall.'

Finally, Akagi decides to move in just a little closer, a half step at most. A newfound hardness in his eyes, he lifts his right arm and Miyagi stiffens up, prepared for the inevitable beating.

What he's not prepared for, however, is a swift slap on the back of his head.

"Idiot, I'm not graduating for another seven months!" Before Miyagi can even begin to respond, however, the taller boy pulls him into a hug. Face buried in Akagi's chest, Miyagi flinches at the sudden contact before finally wrapping his arms around his upperclassman's waist and pulling him closer.

Looking up Miyagi smiles warmly, a gesture that Akagi returns in full. The smile, however, is quickly replaced with a mischievous smirk.

"We're home alone right?"


	2. Miyagi and Jerseys

Author's Note

For anyone wondering why I even wrote the first chapter, it was mainly out of frustration at how Akagi and Miyagi are often marginalized in the Slam Dunk fandom. Akagi just doesn't have very many fans despite arguably having the most back story and character development (we get to see his dreams, his vulnerabilities, his growing bond with Sakuragi, and even parts of his childhood). Really if his design were better looking, he'd probably be very popular.

Miyagi is quite the opposite in that regard, being defined mainly by his crush on Ayako, his bad boy streak, and being a pretty standard point guard (short but clever). His design is also less conventionally attractive, so he's generally only shipped with Ayako as the token hetero pairing or occasionally with Mitsui, and even then the focus is always on Mitsui.

It's pretty unfortunate that two of the main characters get ignored just because of looks alone. Compare the numbers fics dedicated to them to fics about secondary characters like Sendoh, Fujima, Hanagata, and even Koshino.

If the ending felt tacked on, that's because it kinda was. I like the idea of bittersweet, unrequited romance, but I don't have the heart to torture Miyagi. So I gave him a happy ending (hehe, "happy ending"…). But as I've decided to continue this fic, I'm going to try to take a more pragmatic approach.

Don't worry, chapter 2 isn't at all smutty.

* * *

><p>When Miyagi slipped his new jersey on (differentiated by the number 4) he was met with howls of laughter. Sakuragi was clutching his stomach and gasping for air, Mitsui had the nerve to point and sneer at him, Ayako was practically shaking trying to suppress her giggles, and even Rukawa was almost smirking and let out what sounded like a "pff".<p>

As much as it pained Miyagi, he honestly couldn't blame them for laughing, even if his first impulse was to punch them all square in the face (except Ayako, of course). Usually, Shohoku's jerseys were passed down from upperclassmen to lower, only replaced once every five years if they were lucky. It wasn't really a tradition so much as a necessity; Shohoku High School didn't exactly have the best funding to begin with, never mind the money to provide anything more then the bare minimum for its sports clubs.

For the most part, this was usually not a problem. Many of the numbers were largely arbitrary, if you couldn't fit into jersey #6 (which was a size small), then you could always wear jersey #10 (a size large). The only exceptions, of course, were numbers 4 and 5, assigned specifically to the captain and his vice. And unfortunately for Miyagi, Shohoku's captains of the past three years had all been centers, or more to the point, ridiculously tall guys who wore ridiculously large shirts.

Thus leaving Miyagi with a jersey two sizes too large for him, the loose fitting material hanging right above his knees, looking more like a sundress dress then a sleeveless shirt. Even he was tempted to laugh (albeit bitterly) at how childish he must have looked, like a toddler trying on his father's clothes.

Fortunately, the ruckus was subdued when Ayako decided to reward all the starters with a fan to the head for their rudeness.

"Well I kind of figured it might not fit properly," the manager started as another wave of snickers began, "So I ordered an extra number 4 in your size. It should be delivered in two to three weeks, so until then you'll have to make due with Akagi-senpai's old jersey."

"Thanks, Aya-chan," Miyagi smiles gratefully.

Later that night…

Miyagi stared at the jersey in his hands: Worn fabric, faded letters, and a dingy shade of red. Really no different then his old number 7, yet he still couldn't wrap his mind around this current jersey being his. Of course, with his new uniform coming in a couple of weeks, he supposed this wasn't much of a problem to begin with.

Still, every time he looked at this jersey, all he could think of was broad shoulders, thickly muscled arms, and a larger-then-life presence that he could never hope to achieve. He wondered how and at what point his desire to _be_ tall and masculine had somehow evolved into wanting _someone _tall and masculine. Preferably in his bed.

Miyagi sighed, a familiar knot forming in the pit of his stomach. Anxiety? Guilt? Shame? He wasn't really sure. It was one thing to acknowledge that he wasn't entirely straight. Feeling comfortable with this new discovery was an entirely different matter.

'So then why did I kiss him? Well I guess in the end it worked out…' Miyagi thought as his mind wandered back to the events of the day prior.

"_We're home alone right?" Miyagi asks mischievously, looking up at the taller boy. Looking down, Akagi only snorts and peels the smaller boy off of him._

"_My mother's going to be home soon, idiot," Akagi chides, "Besides, aren't you moving a bit fast?" Miyagi only looks mildly disappointed as he sits back down on the bed with Akagi. Truthfully, he'd only been half serious._

"_Well it's not like we don't already know each other…" Miyagi smiles as he leans on Akagi's arm. Taking the cue, the older boy slings his arm over his underclassman's shoulder._

"_Yeah which was why neither of us realized the other was gay till 5 seconds ago…" Akagi quips._

"_Bisexual. I'm bisexual." When Akagi gives him a doubtful look he adds, "I really did like Ayako."_

_"So then what changed?"_

"_She likes someone else," Miyagi sighs, "Well she hasn't confessed yet, but there isn't a guy in Shohoku who would turn her down."_

_ 'Apparently I don't count,' Akagi frowns, "So I'm just your fallback…"_

_ Realizing the implications of his statement, Miyagi shakes his head furiously, "No, no, no, it's not like that…You see, the person Ayako's confessing to is a senior. It made me realize you'll be leaving soon too so I figured it'd be better to confess to you now rather then regret never saying anything later."_

_ Akagi's disapproving expression doesn't budge however, "So you never actually thought about how I might've felt?"_

_Miyagi almost snorts, "You don't exactly exude gay vibes you know."_

_ Smiling, Akagi relaxes, "Yeah, I guess I never thought you'd be bisexual with the way you chased after Aya-"_

_ knock knock_

_ 'Damn it.'_

_ Quickly putting some distance between Miyagi and himself, Akagi opens the door to let the visitor in. Stepping into the room, Haruko greets them warmly, "Oh, hi, Miyagi-san! I was just wondering whose shoes those were at the front, that's all. Would you like to stay for dinner?"_

_ "No thanks, I was actually just about to go," Miyagi casually replies before turning to Akagi, "I'll see you later."_

_ Disappointment flashes across Akagi's face before he responds with a gruff, "Yeah, later."_

_...  
><em>

'I wonder if Haruko overheard us,' Miyagi cringed, wondering if she would tell anyone, 'I don't think I'm ready for that yet.' Feeling overwhelmed, the point guard folds the jersey up and puts it in his gym bag, noting how it still faintly smelled like its previous owner.

* * *

><p>Author's Note: What did you think they did, you perverts?<p>

To Star7: Haha, this is the second Slam Dunk fic of mine you've reviewed. I guess I might as well just tell you everything I write is either crack and/or disturbing so be warned, haha.

I really wanted to write Akagi/Miyagi as being a complex and difficult to define relationship, although I'm also a hopeless romantic so it's hard to keep a balance between what I want to write and what I want to _indulge_ in writing.


	3. First Year Miyagi and Second Year Akagi

Author's Note: YAY, Flashback Chapter!

* * *

><p>Ever since entering Shohoku High, there had been many rumors surrounding Miyagi Ryota. Most were absurd, like that he was the son of a Yakuza or that he was a chronic womanizer (which was so far removed from the truth it was comical), but there were a few with some weight to them. Like that Mitsui was trying to get him to join his gang through less then friendly means.<p>

If the rumors were true, Miyagi certainly didn't show it. For all his flaws, once Miyagi committed to something he was relentless, and refusing to let Mitsui faze him was no different. And truthfully, there wasn't much anyone could do to help him, anyways; any attempts to stop the harassment would only incur further wrath from Mitsui and his jackass friends, putting the basketball club in danger.

While Akagi is sure Mitsui's only doing this out of spite rather then any real interest in his underclassman, he still finds himself scowling whenever the small, paranoid part of his brain suggests otherwise. He really isn't sure why.

...

When Miyagi steps into the gym, all eyes are quickly on him: Tousled hair, bruised face and blood dripping from his nose, hardly the image expected of Shohoku's supposed "rookie ace".

"Ryota!" Ayako nearly shrieks as she runs to find a first aid kit while Akagi approaches him with his usual stern expression.

"What did you do now?"

Face turning red, the underclassman sheepishly replies, "I ran into Mitsui and his gang again. Something about my attitude and hanging out in the 2nd year hallway."

As his expression hardens, Akagi lays a hand on Miyagi's shoulder, "If he bothers you again, tell me."

Hearing the subtle anger in the older boy's voice, Miyagi only nods meekly. Uncomfortably aware of the heavy grip on his shoulder, (a gesture he could only assume was meant to be reassuring) Miyagi quickly pulls away, presumably to go find Ayako.

...

On the very rare days when Kogure's not in class, 2nd year Takenori Akagi tends to eat alone in the gym. While he wasn't necessarily anti-social, he also wasn't particularly close with anyone else in his class; especially without his mild-mannered companion around to make him more approachable. Thus, along with being his main practice spot, the gym had become his sanctuary during lunch.

So when he hears the steady beat of a basketball being bounced from inside the building, he's naturally a bit surprised. The surprise is lessened though, when he enters the gyms only to see a familiar face dribbling the ball. His presence is quickly noticed, however, and the dribbling player pauses to greet him.

"Sup," Miyagi greets with a wave before running over to the taller boy, basketball tucked under one arm.

"Hey," Akagi waves back, "Do you usually practice during lunch?"

"Only recently, I used to eat on the roof but Mitsui and his friends have pretty much taken that spot for themselves…"

'And you can't do anything about it since you aren't allowed to pick fights anymore,' Akagi mentally finishes, "Did you eat your lunch already?"

"Actually I forgot to bring my lunch today," Miyagi answers, sheepishly rubbing the back of his head.

Akagi only huffs disapprovingly before tossing Miyagi a plastic wrapped curry bun, "I had two; you can pay me back later. No point coming to practice if you're just going to be hungry then entire time." Miyagi nods appreciatively and he takes a seat beside Akagi on the gym floor. The two eat in silence for a few minutes until Miyagi begins to find the quiet irritating.

Desperate to fill the air, he asks the first question that comes to mind "So how'd you get into basketball?" Akagi only shoots him a perturbed look at being asked a question while his mouth is full.

Finishing off the rest of his curry bread, Akagi finally answers, "I saw a basketball magazine when I was younger and thought it looked interesting. And I figured if I was going to play a sport I should aim for the highest level."

"So you've always been obsessed with being champion, huh..." Miyagi smiles, "What about going pro? The NBA?"

Staring off into the distance, Akagi's expression hardens as he answers, "I'm only tall by Japanese standards. Centers in the America are around 215 cm." Gazing sympathetically at his upperclassman, Miyagi's not quite sure what to say.

"I want to play as much basketball as I can while I still have the time to," Akagi continues, a sense finality in his voice that made him seem more even intense then usual.

Nodding in agreement, Miyagi grins reassuringly at his teammate, "Yeah, I'll make sure we make it to the nationals this year."

...

When Akagi hears an ambulance truck pull up to the school, he can't help but be secretly excited by this sudden turn in his otherwise ordinary day. When he sees Miyagi's battered, unconscious body being rolled in, he wishes he could've taken that all back.

...

The first time he visits him in the hospital, he's alone. There's a giant get-well card on a nearby table that he remembers signing and a bouquet of flowers no doubt brought in by Ayako the day before. As Miyagi rests peacefully on his bed, he looks uncharacteristically frail, nothing like the clever boy whose speed was matched only by rowdiness.

'Two sprained ribs, a broken nose, a cracked collar bone, and a Grade III concussion,' Akagi mentally reviews, parroting what the nurse had told him, 'It'll take him at least two months to heal and that's not even taking into account how long before he can actually play sports again.'

"So much for taking us to the nationals," Akagi mumbles with a sigh. He would've left if he hadn't noticed Miyagi stirring in his sleep.

Eyes slowly opening, the injured boy blinks a few times as it takes him a moment to remember where he is. Adjusting to his surroundings, his eyes are naturally drawn to Akagi's rather imposing presence.

"Oh, hey, sempai," Miyagi greets in an almost absurdly nonchalant manner. Nodding back, Akagi responds with an equally-as-casual "hey".

"How long have you been here?" The younger boy starts.

Akagi shrugs, "A few minutes maybe."

Miyagi only stares at him confused, "Well then why didn't you wake me up?"

Akagi shoots him an equally as perplexed look, "Because you were sleeping and it's rude to wake up injured people."

"…So you were watching me sleep," Miyagi concludes as he gives Akagi a funny look.

"…"

"Um...Sempai, that's kind of-"

"Shut up," Akagi grumbles, his face now a bright red. Seeing Akagi's expression, Miyagi lets out a loud laugh only to quickly clutch his ribs.

"Serves you right," the upperclassman chides, "Also, I'm _captain_ now."

"Oh yeah, that's right, Ayako told me," Miyagi brightens, regaining his composure, "Congratulations." Nodding in response, Akagi can't think of anything else to say after "thanks". Just as an awkward silence is about to set in, Miyagi breaks the tension once more.

"I'm so sorry I got us expelled from the tournament. It's all my fault," he begins as he stares back up at his new captain, his eyes look nothing short of heart broken.

"Miyagi…"

"If I hadn't pissed off Mitsui none of this would've happened. I ruined everything. I let everyone down," he continues, his voice becoming increasingly more strained.

"Miyagi."

Fists shaking, the boy can no longer hold back his tears, "We worked so hard and we didn't even get a chance to prove ourselves because of me. I took away any chance we had of getting into the nationals all because I was selfish. And I let you down, even though I knew how much being national champion meant to yo-"

"MIYAGI!" Akagi practically shouts, finally halting the sobbing boy's tangent, "Stop talking."

"But-"

"It's wasn't your fault," Akagi asserts as he hands Miyagi a tissue, "Mitsui harassing you had nothing to do with you personally. He would've done it even if you were a model student and he would've attacked you no matter what you did."

"…But why?"

Akagi sighs, "It's not my business to say and I actually don't know the whole story myself. I think you'd be better off asking Kogure or Coach Anzai about it." As tempted as he is to push the subject, Miyagi knew his captain wasn't one to divulge more information then necessary.

Instead Miyagi moves on to a different topic, "Um… I'm not expelled from from the basketball club, am I?"

"I just told you it wasn't your fault, didn't I?" Akagi scolds as he reaches out to brush some stray hairs away from Miyagi's face, "There's no reason for you to be banned from basketball and Anzai-sensei even said you could return whenever you wanted."

Blushing at the sudden contact, Miyagi pulls away. It suddenly occurs to Akagi that, outside of games, the smaller boy really doesn't like to be touched. Atleast not by him, anyways. And that even after withdrawing his hand from Miyagi's personal space, the boy is still beet red.

"Did I do something wrong, Miya-"

_knock knock_

Almost as if on cue, a nurse's head pops out from behind the door, "Sorry but visiting hours will be over in five minutes."

"Oh, okay, thank you!" Miyagi replies with relief, sounding far more grateful then the situation called for.

"Well, I guess I better get going then," Akagi declares, getting up from his seat beside Miyagi's bed.

"Akagi," Miyagi interjects in his best faux-casual voice.

"Hm?"

"Thanks. For visiting me."


	4. Akagi and Dreaming

Author's Note: This has a lot of smut and disturbing trains of thought and I should feel bad for writing it except I don't.

* * *

><p><em>"H-harder," Miyagi moans lewdly, his small, tight body writhing in pleasure with every thrust. As Miyagi straddles him, he can see every tensed muscle, every minute movement, and every drop of sweat sliding down the younger boy's tanned body. With his normally slicked back hair splayed about his forehead, his loose curls frame his eyes and give him a wonderfully feral look.<em>

_Cheeks flushed, eyes half lidded, and panting heavily, a torrent of moans and various iterations of "fuck me harder" flow uncontrollably from Miyagi's lips and Akagi is sure he's never been more fucking turned on in his entire life-_

_Beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep_

Awakened by his insufferably annoying alarm, Akagi groans as the morning light streams through his window and hits him square in the eye. Forcing himself up, Akagi reaches for his alarm clock and promptly (and with just a hint of spite) rips the chord out of the nearby socket. Rubbing the sleep from his eyes, he's suddenly painfully aware of how sticky his boxers are and quickly checks his sheets. Stains.

Lovely.

Promptly peeling his boxers off, Akagi balls them up and throws them into his laundry bin, making a mental note to throw his sheets into the washer as soon as he gets out of school. As he goes through his usual routine, Akagi can't help but replay the dream in his head. As a healthy teenage male, nocturnal emissions were hardly a cause for surprise (embarrassment: yes, surprise: no), but it'd been a while since he had one so vivid and more importantly, involving Miyagi.

In fact, aside from one other person (whom he didn't want to think about), Miyagi was actually the only guy Akagi had ever dreamt about _that_ way. He certainly remembers the first time it occurred: Exactly two days after Miyagi was made starter. He can't recall much about that dream though, just something that involved Miyagi blowing him in the locker room.

He does remember having felt absolutely horrible about it the next day; to the point that he couldn't even look Miyagi in the eye for a week straight. After all, a sempai is supposed to be like an older brother to his underclassmen, especially when in a club and even more so to the freshmen. It also didn't help that even _his_ sempais would joke that he was practically Shohoku High School's "Universal Older Brother".

And older brothers don't fantasize about their younger brothers.

It was shortly after that, Akagi realizes, that he began his habit of patting his teammates (ie Miyagi) on the head whenever they did a good job. As if taking on the role of "team dad" would somehow replace his uncomfortable _sexual_ feelings with socially acceptable paternal affection. And with the exception of Miyagi, it worked. He couldn't even fathom seeing Sakuragi as anything other then the bratty little brother he never had, Rukawa was practically asexual by nature, and everyone else was like a close cousin.

Except Miyagi.

Whether it was a high five or a pat on the back, it always felt a little different with him. Never quite right. The occasional sex dream didn't help that either.

He supposes, at the root of it all, that his fixation with turning Miyagi into some untouchable little brother was just another way of keeping people at an arm's length. A fear of acknowledging feelings he was so sure wouldn't be reciprocated. A fear of having his heart broken again. He wonders if (ironically) it was his fear of rejection that had kept him from noticing any signs that Miyagi might've felt the same way.

Sighing, Akagi packed his books away and headed out the school library door. It seemed neither his classes nor independent study could sufficiently hold his attention today. Checking his watch, it occurs to him that basketball practice should have just finished, and decides to pay the team a visit. When he arrives at the gym, however, he's surprised to see only Miyagi left.

"Everyone's gone already? Normally, Rukawa will at least stick around."

"The 1st years all went home early to study for some big English test. Mitsui's been here since 6am practicing his shooting, so he was pretty exhausted by the end of evening practice. The 2nd years all just went out to eat."

"So then why'd you stay behind?"

"I'd rather eat with you," Miyagi smiles and tosses Akagi a plastic wrapped curry bun.


	5. Closure

Author's Note: Talky talky talky, short, boring slice-of-life convos mostly and some attempts at sincerity. You have been warned.

* * *

><p>"So how's the team been doing?" Akagi asks after finishing off his curry bun. Lying against the gym wall, the two ended up together eating in silence.<p>

Balling up the plastic wrapper and shoving it in his pocket, Miyagi sighs, "Alright I guess. Everyone's been working hard, especially Mitsui-sempai, but we still haven't found a suitable substitute to fill in for Sakuragi's position."

"Aren't we a seeded team this time around? Sakuragi should be back by the quarter-finals…"

"Yeah but since he's the tallest on the team, we moved him to center."

"Ah, I see," Is all Akagi can say. Having never been very good at small talk, Akagi cuts to straight to the point, "So what am I to you?"

Taken back by his bluntness, Miyagi reflexively tenses up, "I don't know. What am I to you?" Akagi only frowns at his uninformative answer.

"I like you, Miyagi," he says sternly, a faint blush on his face, "But if you're not serious, I don't want to be with you."

'Stern, efficient, and slightly threatening, typical Akagi-sempai,' Miyagi muses.

"I'm not just interested in sex, if that's what you mean," Miyagi teases, smirking when he sees Akagi flinch at the word sex, "…But I'm also not entirely comfortable putting myself out there."

"…With men," Miyagi adds before Akagi could predictably reference his ten girl rejection streak, "But I really like you, Akagi-sempai, and I always have. I was just…scared of acknowledging that part of me and that's why I clung to Ayako."

Sliding his hand on to Akagi's, Miyagi squeezes it, "But I really want to be with you, even after you go off to college." Seeing Miyagi so earnestly opening up to him, Akagi's is at a lost of words to say.

"What I'm trying to say is… I want to be your boyfriend."

"…"

A dreaded silence sets in as Miyagi waits for Akagi's reply. 'He doesn't believe me, does he? And why should he? I spent two years chasing after Aya-'

Miyagi's train of thought is cut short when Akagi suddenly leans down and plants a kiss on his forehead, "…Ok. I'll be your boyfriend."

* * *

><p>"Something happen?"<p>

"Why do you say that?" responded Akagi as he finished off the rest of his curry bun. While he would've preferred spending lunch with Miyagi, he knew breaking from his usual routine would only draw more attention then either he or Miyagi were ready to deal with. Especially with Kogure around.

"Ever since you quit basketball, you've been all fidgety during class. But lately you've been calmer, like you're preoccupied with something," Kogure surmised.

'Why does he have to be so damn perceptive…' Akagi mentally grumbled, "Not really, I've just been staying up later to study."

"Shouldn't you be sleeping more now that you college exams to worry about? Especially now that you don't have to worry about basketball?"

When Akagi doesn't respond, Kogure sighs, "Well, whatever you say. At least try to get eight hours in."

'Observant bastard…'

* * *

><p>"Hey, Ryota," Ayako greeted awkwardly as Miyagi entered the gym.<p>

"Uh, hey, Ayako," Miyagi waved back uncomfortably, "Are you the only one here right now?"

Ayako nodded and then got straight to the point, "Actually, I have a reason for being here early." Piquing Miyagi's curiousity, she reluctantly continued, "I was wondering if… you're still angry at me."

Hearing this, Miyagi's expression softened, "Ayako, I was never _angry_ at you. I was just incredibly depressed and wanted to avoid being around you."

"Oh yes, that makes me feel so much better," Ayako quips.

Smiling, Ryota shoots back with, "I'm just being honest. And don't worry, I'm over it. I just want you to be happy."

Ayako sighed, "You're not lying to seem strong are you? Because if you have something you want to say to me, I'd rather you just chew me out rather then secretly resenting me."

Smiling earnestly, Ryota assured, "I'm fine with just being friends. Really."

Quietly relieved, Ayako smiled and replied in a faux-exasperated voice, "You're too quick to forgive people, you know that? You're a good guy, Ryota." Flattered, Miyagi only shrugs sheepishly. As a peaceful quiet sets, the two smile contently to themselves. At least until Miyagi got bored of it.

"So have you confessed to _him_, yet?" The point guard inquires curiously.

Blushing at his unabashed lack of tact, Ayako shakes her head, "No, not yet."

"Scaredy-cat," Ryota teases, poking Ayako in the arm.

Smirking, Ayako retorts in her best pseudo-offended voice, "You know what Ryota, never mind, you're an ass."


End file.
